A #Halloween Decorating Idea by Kristin Wallace

I can’t believe it’s October already! In so many ways time seems to have stopped mid-March and yet the calendar keeps changing.  

I wanted to share something a little more lighthearted this month. It’s a Halloween decorating idea that is super cute and easy for even non-crafty people (which I definitely am) can do. 

 

Now I did not come up with this idea on my own. I was in Party City looking for decorations to put up in my apartment for my roommate’s birthday a couple weeks ago. Since the Halloween decorations were already out in full force, I looked around and came upon a display of clear round ornaments with tiny Halloween-themed lights inside them. 

 

At first I wanted to buy the ornaments, but of course, they were just for the display for the lights. Still, I loved the idea so much that I decided to make some for my apartment. 

 

I bought 8 sets of lights, including ones with tiny pumpkins, ghosts, spiders, and bats, as well as simple colored lights. I also bought a string of lights with pumpkins on them. Mine came from Party City, but I’m sure you can find similar lights at other stores. 

 

Then I bought clear plastic balls at Michaels. Again, you might have another craft store that sells something like that. Since Christmas décor is also already out they aren’t hard to find. 

 

NOTE: Make sure you get ornaments that come with two halves that you fit together. If you get the regular ornaments with only a small hole at the top the lights won’t fit. (I realized this after buying the wrong kind of ornaments.)

 

Then you put batteries in the lights, put them inside one half of an ornament, and snap the two halves together. Then you can hang them wherever you want. 

 

It turned out really nice. 

 

The best thing is, I can change out the lights inside the ornaments for different holidays. I’ll probably try fall colors for Thanksgiving and then red & green for Christmas. 

 

Do you have any cool Halloween decorating ideas? Please share them with me! 

 

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of sweet contemporary and inspirational romance filled with Love, Laughter, and a Leap of Faith. She is the author of three popular series, Covington Falls Chronicles, Shellwater Key Tales, and Palm Cove Tales. 

Writing Resolutions in 2020...by Kristin Wallace

While most people make New Year’s Resolutions, authors tend to make Writer’s Resolutions. At least I do. Every year I have grand plans to write X number of books. Unfortunately, I have to confess that 2019 was not a good year for me as an author. I had plans, but most of them didn’t happen. A lot was due to having to meet deadlines for my “day job” freelance writing gig, often working 7 days a week to get things turned in on time. 

The other reason had to do with some weird health issues that messed with my ability to focus, which as you can imagine, makes creative writing extremely difficult. In many ways, the voices that I've always had in my head basically went “silent”. In the end, I only managed to publish one book, SECOND CHANCE HERO, which is part of the Palm Cove Tales series. 

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BUT…I am truly hoping to get back on track for 2020. I do have plans and plenty of ongoing projects to keep me busy.

One is the reissue my inspirational series, COVINGTON FALLS CHRONICLE. I got the right back from the original publisher some time ago and created new covers. I’m just doing light editing. I also hope to continue with that series. There are so many characters begging for stories in my quirky Southern town. 

I am also working on a fun new series called THE LOST ROYALS about separated siblings who find out they are royalty. 

Finally, there is a joint project/series that I plan to publish with one of my author friends. It’s a modern-day take on Cinderella featuring a pair of magic shoes and a cursed Stepmother who might not be as bad as everyone thought. 

So those are my plans…now to get writing! 

I did put together a Christmas box set with three of my Shellwater Key holiday tales (Finding You At Christmas, Falling For You At Christmas, and Loving You At Christmas). Christmas in Shellwater Key is available on Kindle Unlimited so even though it's January, go ahead and scoop it up now. 

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Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and sweet contemporary romance filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. The Christmas in Shellwater Key boxes et will release this winter. 

Try These Recipes For Thanksgiving by Kristin Wallace

It's November which means Thanksgiving is almost here. If you’re still deciding on a menu for the big day, I have a couple to share with you that you will love! 

Sweet Potato Casserole 

Ingredients:

3 cups mashed sweet potato

1cup sugar

½ cup milk

1/3 cut butter softened

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

Blend everything together until it is smooth and creamy. Pour into a oven safe baking dish.

Topping:

1 cup chopped nuts (Use pecans or almonds. I prefer pecans.)

1 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup melted butter

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the melted butter and stir until it is moist. If it’s too runny or goopy add a little flour to thicken. Crumble the mixture in chunks on top so it covers the entire surface.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes

Smashed Potatoes

What is Thanksgiving without mashed potatoes? We make these in my house every year, and they are delicious. 

Ingredients:

1 -1½ lbs. of Yukon Gold potatoes (unpeeled)

½ tsp. of salt

4 Tbsp. heavy cream

2 Tbsp. butter

1 Tbsp. milk

Salt & Pepper

Boil potatoes in a large pot, with a little bit of salt. Cook for about 15-20 minutes until you can poke them easily with a fork. 

Drain water and let the potatoes sit for a few minutes. Peel the potatoes, leaving some of the skin on as you go. Cut up potatoes and put them in a large bowl. Add the butter, milk and cream and beat until everything is smooth. Use salt and pepper to taste.

Derby Pie

What's Thanksgiving without pie? The last dish is for Kentucky Derby Pie. If you like chocolate you will love this.

Ingredients:

½ cup melted butter

1 cup sugar

½ cup flour

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

¾ cup chocolate chips

¾ cup nuts (walnuts or pecans)

9 inch unbaked pie crust or shell

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Pour into the pie shell. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until the top is browned. DEVOUR!

Hope your holiday is DELICIOUS!

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and sweet contemporary romance filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Her latest book, SECOND CHANCE HERO, part of the Palm Cove Tales is available now. 

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Chicken Noodle Soup For Your Taste Buds by Kristin Wallace

Everyone has been talking about food lately, with many of my fellow #SweetRomance authors sharing recipes. Yesterday was #NationalDoughnutDay. Is it a coincidence that a gourmet doughnut shop just opened within walking distance of my place? They make all these amazing flavors like the chocolate on chocolate with chocolate mousse filling pictured here. Plus, they had white chocolate, dulce de leche, cookies & cream, and key lime pie, among others. Is it a conspiracy to get me to eat more doughnuts? Maybe! 

 

However, I also want to show that I’m trying to eat healthier. Tonight I cooked homemade chicken noodle soup. It’s not my recipe. In fact, I stole it from my parents…who got it off the back of the chicken bouillon jar. It is DELICIOUS and so EASY to make!

Here’s the recipe for Chicken Noodle Soup. 

Start with chicken bullion. I like the “Better Than Bullion” brand for this recipe. It’s not a powder or cubes like some brands. It has more of a thick paste consistency so it’s creamier. 

Ingredients:

·       6 Tablespoons of chicken bouillon 

·       Half of a rotisserie chicken diced into small pieces (Note: You can use whatever chicken you want, but it does need to be cooked. Rotisserie chicken is easy as you can buy it cooked at the store. You can use more than half of the chicken, it just depends on how much you like)

·       8-10 cups (2 ½ quarts) of water

·       A package of frozen vegetables (I use 2 small bags, 1-corn and 1-mixed as I like a lot of corn and most frozen varieties either don’t have corn or only a very little. Use whatever veggies you like though.)

·       Egg noodles (This recipe says to use 6 ounces but I say screw that! The noodles are the best part! Use as much as you want!)

Directions:

·       Dissolve the bouillon in the water in a large pot

·       Add the chicken (diced), frozen vegetables, and egg noodles

·       Bring to a full boil

·       Lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the egg noodles are soft.

·      ENJOY!

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and sweet contemporary romance filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Her latest book, SECOND CHANCE HERO (Palm Cove Tales), is available now.

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Cruise With Your Muse by Kristin Wallace

Sunrise on the Caribbean

If you’ve been swamped by late-winter storms…I’m sorry. I might make your suffering worse with this blog, which is about the cruise conference I just went on last week. It was a conference with my local writer chapter, Florida Romance Writers…on a cruise ship. We do this conference every other year, but this time I somehow wound up as the conference planner. 

We went on a Royal Caribbean ship from Fort Lauderdale to Cozumel, Mexico. Having a conference on a cruise ship is both wonderful and challenging. The best part is simply hanging out with other authors for four days. Unlike a huge conference like RWA Nationals, we had about 50 people so we really get to know each other better. We also get value time with editors and agents, which you can never get at another type of conference. There were workshops and other group events, including our famous Floridian Idol where 2 pages of a manuscript are read out loud (anonymously of course) and then the panel of editors and agents give their immediate feedback. We also had the honor of hosting NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Jennifer Ashley as our Keynote Speaker. 

The challenges come from the simple fact that you are on a ship in the middle of the sea so you are pretty much at the mercy of the crew. You never know if the projector will work the way it’s supposed to…and it often didn’t. You have to be flexible and try not to freak out if something doesn’t

go the way you planned. (Or at least fake being calm and collected.)

I think the best thing about the Cruise Conference is meeting new people and making new friends. On this voyage, we had authors from Texas, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and even Belgium. Some were just starting out and others were multi-published, both traditionally and indie. I hope we’ll all keep in touch. I know I feel like I made 50 new friends. 

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and contemporary romance, and women’s fiction filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Her next book, SECOND CHANCE HERO, is part of a new Palm Cove Tales trilogy, and is available for pre-order now.

Second Chance Hero is the follow-up to The Heiress Games trilogy. This story features Serena Douglas, who not only lost the Armington fortune, but also managed to escape the competition without falling in love…or so she thought.

It all starts with a new challenge…and hairless cat named King Tut. Serena has a chance to win a $10 million fortune. All she needs is a job. Too bad the only one willing to hire her is the one man she’s been trying to forget since she was a teenager. 

Pre-order today

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New Year…New Projects by Kristin Wallace

Happy New Year and welcome to 2019! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with family & friends. The start of a new year is when we all make resolutions and plans, including writers. I wanted to let you in on some projects that I plan for this year. 

Project #1: Palm Cove Tales

First up in March, the (very delayed) release of SECOND CHANCE HERO, featuring Serena Douglas, who was a major player in The Heiress Games series. Serena is Abby’s “slightly” difficult sister from Not Quite An Heiress. She’s paired with security expert, Damon Grant, who also made an appearance in the books. This book was supposed to come out in the fall, but I fell way behind as Serena and Damon took their sweet time telling me their story. This story involves saving a hairless Sphynx cat named King Tut. Lots of fun!

 

Project #2: Return to Covington Falls Chronicles

At the end of last year, I got the rights back to my inspirational romance series, Covington Falls Chronicles. I plan to re-release the original 4 books this year and THEN there will be all NEW books. I’m so excited to be able to return to my quirky little Southern town and these characters I love. I’m curious as to what has happened to them J

Project #3: The Lost Royals

This is an entirely new series based on 6 royal siblings. The catch is…they don’t know they are royalty. After their mother and father (the King and Queen) die, the young children are spirited away and hidden to save them from their evil uncle. Years later it is finally safe to bring the children back. Only they are no longer children, of course, and they have no idea how to be royals. They must be “taught” how to be a royal.

So there are my plans. Now just to find a way to make it all happen…I foresee a lot of early morning writing sessions.

Kristin Wallaceis the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and contemporary romance, and women’s fiction filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Look for her upcoming release, SECOND CHANCE HERO, soon. 

Remembering Christmas Presents Past by Kristin Wallace

The lights are twinkling all over and my (mini) Christmas tree is up. Now, it's time for Christmas shopping. Christmas always makes me think of being a kid and the excitement of the big morning. We always went to church on Christmas Eve for the candle lighting service, which is the most beautiful thing. Sometimes we’d open presents on Christmas Eve because we usually drove to see my aunt, uncle and cousins for Christmas. When I was a kid I wanted an Easy Bake Oven. 

Another year Cabbage Patch Dolls were the rage. I remember they were on back order and it took months to get them. I got one in the summer, which was a preemie, and then I ended up getting two at Christmas. I still have them. I found them in a box when my parents were moving a couple years ago. They still look pretty good, right?

But I think my favorite present ever was a huge, stuffed bunny that I got when I was about 4 or 5. It was yellow and soft and I could sit on its lap. Yes, that's actually me with the bunny.

These days it’s harder to figure out what I want. Well, actually my real wish is to be a world-famous author and make my total living off my writing, lol. I’m not sure anyone can give me that present, not even Santa Claus. 

What are your favorite Christmas memories from growing up? Was there was special present you really wanted? 

Kristin Wallaceis the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and contemporary romance, and women’s fiction filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Kristin’s latest release is SECOND CHANCE CHRISTMAS, a new entry her Palm Cove Tales series. 

Second Chance Christmas

A delightful holiday novella that continues the Palm Cove Tales, with appearances from some of your favorites “Heiress Games” characters. This new series focuses on the family of security expert, Damon Grant.

Ten years ago, Mia Reynolds and Win Barrington spent one magical Christmas together. Until lies and manipulation at the hands of Win’s wealthy family tore them apart, leaving Mia to raise a daughter on her own. Now, both have returned to their hometown of Palm Cove, Florida. Once they uncover the truth about what happened, can Mia and Win rediscover the love they once lost and celebrate a Second Chance Christmas with their daughter?

Download your copy today!

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Spotlight on Second Chance Christmas by Kristin Wallace

I'm very excited that my new Christmas romance will launch December 6th! SECOND CHANCE CHRISTMAS first debuted as part of the Sweet Christmas Kisses 5 in September, but now I am publishing it as a single title.

SECOND CHANCE CHRISTMAS is part of my Palm Cove Tales series. It’s the follow-up to the Heiress Games trilogy, which launched this spring. This tale features desperate single mom, Mia Reynolds, the cousin of security expert Damon Grant (who appeared in the Heiress Games books). Mia has been hiding a very big secret about her daughter and now the truth is about to be revealed. 

Ten years ago, Mia Reynolds and Winthrop Barrington spent one magical Christmas together. Until lies and manipulation at the hands of Win’s wealthy family tore them apart and left Mia to raise a daughter on her own. Now, both of them have returned to their hometown of Palm Cove, Florida. Once they uncover the truth about what happened, can Mia and Win rediscover the love they once lost and celebrate a Second Chance Christmas with their daughter?

Now here’s an excerpt from Chapter 1…

Mia eventually left Damon and Riley, who were hanging up posters in her new room, while she went back to get the last box from her car. 

Serena met her at the bottom of the stairs. “Oh, you haven’t changed yet?”
            Mia frowned. “Why would I change now? I’ve been moving and there’s still a lot to sort out.”

“Yes, but you can’t conduct an interview looking like that.” Serena wrinkled her nose. “Not the best first impression.”

Mia gaped in astonishment. “What interview?”

“For your new job, of course.” Serena smiled as though she’d done the world a favor.

“What new job?” Mia looked over at her sister for an explanation, since Serena seemed to be speaking in code.

Chloe grinned. “She has a great opportunity lined up for you.”

“She does?” Mia swiveled back toward Serena. “You do?”

“An old friend of mine recently moved back to town to take over his family’s company and he’s in need of a new executive assistant,” Serena said. “The previous one who worked for his grandfather retired, too.”

“And he’s willing to hire me, just like that? No interview or anything?” Mia asked, amazed that a job offer was being laid out on the table so easily. Even more amazing, the job offer came courtesy of Serena Douglas. “Why are you so willing to help me anyway?”

“Why shouldn’t I help you?”

Because it was Serena Douglas, and she never went out of her way to do anything nice. 

Her sister seemed to understand what Mia was thinking because Chloe sidled closer. “I know it’s weird, but just go with it.”

Serena looked over at her. “Why is my job offer weird?”

“You’re not exactly known for your charitable nature,” Chloe said, her voice full of sarcasm.

Serena straightened, her “off with their heads” look in full force. “I’m workingon that, all right?”

Chloe grinned and shook her head. “I know, but you’re gonna have to give the rest of us time to catch up to the new you.”

“This is what I get for trying to be nice,” Serena murmured, before turning to Mia. “Listen, the job offer is real, and yes, he’s willing to hire you. Actually, Win said he knew you, and wanted to help out.”

Mia almost fell over. “Win? As in Winthrop Barrington?”

Serena stared at her in confusion. “Yes, that’s right. You know him? Well, of course, you probably do know who he is. The Barringtons are one of the most prominent families in town. His grandmother’s family is just as important.”

Panic gripped her like a vise. Win Barrington was living in Palm Cove again? He was supposed to be working for some big corporation in New York. That was the only reason she’d agreed to move back home. “I can’t work for him!” 

“Well, why not?” Serena began to look insulted. “You have an objection to a regular paycheck?”

Chloe put a hand on Mia’s arm. “Honey, calm down. Win is a pretty decent guy, for a North-sider, and you know Barrington Enterprises is stable. It’s been around forever.”

“No, you don’t understand,” Mia said. “He’s not supposed to be in Palm Cove anymore.”

“Why do you care if Win Barrington lives here?” Chloe asked. 

“Yes, I don’t know why you’re freaking out,” Serena said. “Anyway, it’s a little late to protest now. He’ll be here any minute to discuss the job.”

This could not be happening. In town less than a day and already disaster was striking. “No, no, no, no!”

The bell above the door jingled and a tall, dark-haired man in an expensive-looking suit strolled into the bakery. Familiar blue-green eyes found hers and the room spun.

“You!” she breathed.

He gave a half-smile and a shrug. “Hello Mia.”

Pre-order SECOND CHANCE CHRISTMAS today! 

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Kristin Wallace is a USA Today bestselling author of inspirational and sweet contemporary romance filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. She is the author of 3 popular series, Covington Falls Chronicles, Shellwater Key Tales and Palm Cove Tales. Look for Serena and Damon's story, Second Chance Hero, coming soon! For more info about her books, visit Kristin's Website.